A Knight's Formalities?
---- In a rather large facility located within existed a group of elite individuals devoted to justice and the subjugation of darkness. Of course, this group, despite its air of elitism, was quite privy to a number of quirky individuals, one of whom had recently joined on whim by his senior. This group was the Holy Knights, and their most recent addition — Hekamiah — had recently been enlisted as a Squire underneath the knight Dardariel because of their encounter. Dealing with the complexities of this sudden decision was the Squire Captain, Zadkiel. At his desk, he proceeded to fill out the vast majority of the paperwork associated with enlisting a new Holy Knight Candidate, much to his chagrin. "...This is ridiculous." Zadkiel thought aloud as he perused through the files given to him. "There's barely any information here about Hekamiah at all! Even if Lady Dardariel did accept him, this lack of information and potential of grossly inflated rumors is not sufficient evidence to join our ranks." Zadkiel stood up, clearly quite angered as he slammed his hands on his desk. "I suppose I will have to perform a formal evaluation of his skills before I can send in a report to our founder, lest trouble ensues with the Magic Council." Zadkiel began walking along a rather large hallway with the intention of finding the new recruit and ensuring the validity of Dardariel's assessment stands. The young man in question wandered around the marbled halls, fiddling with the gloves he wore while muttering to himself. "Damn... Dar went full out when she said I needed to look nice. This is a little uncomfortable." The attire itself wasn't so different from what he usually wore but was still foreign to him. Not to mention, the amount of work he had to perform to style his hair in a manner that his mentor saw fit had been a hassle. It was then that Cedar stopped, realizing that he was utterly and completely lost in the maze known as Holy Knights Headquarters. He turned around in circles, muttering a single swear underneath his breath before he heard footsteps. Cedar rotated once again, facing the noise as a blonde-haired young man approached. "Hey! You're one of the knights right?" Cedar said, greeting Zadkiel with an informal wave of his hand. "Ah, you are...Hekamiah." Zadkiel noted, surprised to see the man here. He had clearly been groomed under supervision of Lady Dardariel for the purposes of looking the part, but he wasn't in so easily. "Indeed, I am one of the knights. Specifically, I am the Squire Captain, Zadkiel." Zadkiel noted how casual the man was, but also the fact that he appeared to be quite aimless at this point in time. "Were you headed somewhere in particular, Hekamiah? If not, I had a bit of business with you regarding your entrance into our ranks." Zadkiel asked, his intentions as clear as glass. "Nah, Nah, I just got super lost! Dar went to go and do something so, I just started walkin'." Cedar replied with a slight chuckle. His face then returned to a complacent expression as he listened to Zadkiel. After a moment he replied, "Yeah what business? I'm not very good with words or paperwork or nothin' but I'll try my best!" He said cheerfully. It was obvious that whatever tension that was held within Zadkiel's words was lost before the thick-headed man could pick up on it. "...How dense ''is he?" Zadkiel inquired to himself, calming down right afterward. "Oh it is nothing major, just follow me." Zadkiel began to lead the way, turning left at the second door in the hallway and appearing to a large open room seemingly enclosed within a barrier. "Here we are. Would you mind taking a practice weapon, or weapons, Hekamiah? You see, I have had a sore lack of training partners for a while. On top of that, the dossier given to me regarding your combat abilities was sorely lacking in technical skills." Zadkiel gripped his wooden sword with both hands, "Therefore it is my duty as Squire Captain to ascertain whether your skills truly are worthy of candidacy here. En garde, Hekamiah." Cedar followed along happily, and his eyes widened as they entered the magnificent training space. He nodded at Zadkiel's request, taking up one of the largest practice swords he could find with a thick, long blade. The man swung it experimentally, deciding that even though it was not entirely perfect, it would work. Cedar grimaced at the words targeting his skills. "I accept. I didn't get taught at some fancy academy but don't underestimate what I learned. It may not be orthodox but it is how I fight, let's see if you can keep up with my style." He said, smiling before he rotated his shoulder, swinging underhand in an upwards arc towards Zadkiel's ribcage. "The same applies to you!" Zadkiel responded with fervor. His stance had been solid, and the sudden movement of Hekamiah did not surprise him in the slightest. Without a hint of hesitation, Zadkiel swung his sword downwards in a vertical arc to intercept his opponent's blade. The ensuing clash had created a powerful sound that reverberated across the entirety of the training hall, making clear that this skirmish was not merely for show. Although in normal circumstances one would budge away from this clash in order to continue the fight, Zadkiel had made a point that he would continue on with this clash, for he had to both assert his superiority and truly test the limits of Hekamiah's strength. Cedar couldn't shake the grin off his face. Adrenaline pumped through his veins as he fought to push upward against Zadkiel's blade. "You're strong Zakdeil!" Cedar grounded his feet, using his entire body to gradually push his opponent's blade. The man opted to move back, breaking the standstill before striking again. This time it was a straight thrust, charging forward in the blink of an eye. Cedar temporarily forgot the fact that it was spar, using his full strength to cripple his foe. "''Shit." Cedar realized as his blade moved forward, although it was wooden, it would still cause injury if Zadkiel were to get hit. Zadkiel looked upon Hekamiah's next move with keen eyes. He recognized that the very air was splitting in the face of his thrust, and knew it was packed with incredible strength. But Zadkiel was a man of pride, and refused to relent. Taking a grounded stance, he raised both of his arms in front of his face and turned them to his right, his sword's blade facing downwards in a straight position. Hekamiah's blade, thrusting towards him at breakneck speed, would slide through the thin gap created by Zadkiel's maneuver. Of course, even with this maneuver in place, the force behind the lunge forced Zadkiel to momentarily shake, thus losing a precious moment he could have exploited to counter. But it was of little consequence. As Hekamiah sped through, Zadkiel brought his sword in front of his torso. Lowering it down to his waist, he turned the blade on its left and swung with both hands towards Cedar's exposed torso, with the intent of both injuring him and sending him flying back with great force. Cedar caught the movement, realizing the mistake in his movement was his velocity. He had put all of his strength into the attack, without even thinking of what would happen if he failed. Cedar saw the pride in Zadkiel's eyes, showing no other inclination of emotion behind his mask. Quickly, on instinct, Cedar felt as his aura rushed into his arm, bathing it in glowing light before a buckler materialized, strapped to his forearm. The impact of Zadkiel's strike was great, throwing Cedar off balance as he skittered a few feet sideways, managing to stay standing. "Woah!" He said as his shield splintered into bits of dust. He struggled to catch his breath, grinning. Nothing got his blood pumping like a difficult fight like this. "I see." Zadkiel paused, observing Hekamiah's instinctive use of Magic to avoid a detrimental blow. "You are reckless, Hekamiah." Zadkiel stated, poising himself with his blade facing the fellow Squire. "However, you prioritize safety above honor and have good instincts." It was a surprising praise, considering how serious Zadkiel looked in that moment. "We aren't done quite yet." Cedar smiled, "Thanks!" He readied himself into similar stance, with his own blade facing Zadkiel, "Yeah, I figured it wouldn't be this short. Give it your best shot!" He wanted a chance to read Zadkiel for once, instead of having to be on the defensive to his counterattacks. It was something he could work on and there was no better time than the present. Zadkiel understood Hekamiah's intentions by his position, and would reciprocate appropriately. Although offense had never been Zadkiel's strong suit, he would not pass on a fellow Knight's opportunity to improve. With a single dash forward, Zadkiel swung his vertically towards Cedar's chest, once more aiming to finish this in a single, hard blow. Their blades met with a sick scream, Cedar's bones rattling as he parried. He felt elated, fighting was one of the few things he could claim any sort of skill in and here he was, standing fairly even with one of his new comrades. Cedar reacted with a parry, directing Zadkeil's blade to the left while Cedar aimed a sweep towards his knees. She grinned as the scene unfolded. Having intentionally left Cedar to his own devices, Dar knew he would be found by Zadkiel. The Squire Captain was nothing if not thorough when it came to new candidates. Given the relative lack of information, it would only be natural that he wanted to test the newest addition. To see if he was truly worthy of joining their ranks. So she made her way to the logical location, her hunch ensured by the sounds of broken wood and clashing temperaments. Slinking in silently, she found a quiet corner before observing them, particularly the Squire Captain. It was her first time seeing him in a combative setting, causing her gaze to study his form intensely. Meanwhile, she nodded approvingly, seeing that her pupil was holding his own so far. Though adequacy was merely the first step. It was essential that Cedar prove his proficiency. Zadkiel's blade moved to the left, the difference in stature finally accounting for something in their physical differences. Hekamiah's sudden sweep towards the knees would prove problematic, but not something he couldn't completely avoid. "Photon: Flare." Zadkiel chanted. An orb of light sporadically appeared near Zadkiel's knee in the path of Cedar's blade. Holding flame-like characteristics, the instant it touched the wooden blade, it combusted and thus interrupted its path enough for Zadkiel to narrowly back away, leading to only a small injury towards his right calf. "Considering we have now both used Magic in this fight, let us increase the scales a bit." Zadkiel mentioned, "I must also test your proficiency with Magic. As such, feel free to use your Magic in any way you would like." Zadkiel maintained a defensive stance once more, "Photon: Bolt." Orbs of light once again appeared about his being, taking properties similar to lightning. However, he did not move them as-of-yet, awaiting a proper opportunity to use their destructive power. Cedar bit his lip, "Well, I'm afraid my magic won't show you anything too different than what you've seen, but I'll give it my best shot!" Cedar released the charred wooden sword from his grip, his body bathing itself in golden light as armor began to form and a wide broadsword in his hand. He moved again, and even in full armor his speed was still of the same caliber, heading straight for Zadkiel to deliver another cross-strike aimed at his shoulder. "...Requip?" As the Holy Knight pondered, he sent one orb towards Hekamiah's chest as a means to briefly divert his attention. In doing so, Zadkiel had enough time to channel his wooden sword with a bright light that trickled down the blade like a stream of lightning. Without any hesitation, the Squire Captain followed the path of the orb he sent towards his opponent. In doing so, Zadkiel intended to change the path of Hekamiah's offensive away from a cross strike and towards his own blade, thus enabling the possibility of a counterattack. Category:QOS Roleplay